Two brave men

The Washington Times highlights the comments of a very brave man:

Douglas Wood, an Australian engineer held hostage in Iraq for nearly seven weeks [...] apologized for his televised plea for coalition forces to withdraw from Iraq. [...] "Frankly, I'd like to apologize to both President Bush and Prime Minister [John] Howard for the things I said under duress ... I actually believe that I am proof positive that the current policy of training the Iraqi army ... works because it was Iraqis that got me out," he said.

And, in the same article (ostensibly for that "balance" newspeople are always striving for) another man is quoted:

Australia's top Islamic cleric, meanwhile, said the military operation to free Mr. Wood could have endangered the lives of two Iraqis still being held by the kidnappers. "The stupid action that was taken last week has exposed the fathers of these families to death," Sheik Taj El Din al-Hilaly told reporters on his return from Baghdad, where he had tried to secure Mr. Wood's release.

Now Mr. al-Hilaly is also a brave man. Brave to have traveled to Iraq to meet with terrorists, certainly, but also brave to bad-mouth the operation that achieved what he couldn't. The swift and painful reprisal for his criticism will surely... what? We don't do that to people who criticize Coalition efforts? You mean to tell me he can say whatever he wants? What kind of right-wing, Christian theocracy are we running here?

(Sarcasm off)

UPDATE: Tim Blair has been all over this affair from day one.

It now appears that claims the raid that freed Mr Wood had damaged the rescue hopes for two other Iraqis are also unfounded, as the men were killed several weeks ago.

Hmmmm....